DID YOU KNOW?

Many fans know how many home runs Gary Sheffield hit last year (42) or Kevin Brown's ERA (1.89) in '96 but here are some facts you won't find in the boxscore:

-- Kurt Abbott and his wife Stacey have two yellow labradors that sleep on an extra bed in the couple's master bedroom.

Back in the swing

-- Moises Alou broke into the majors with Jim Leyland's Pirates in 1990 but was traded three weeks later to Montreal. Played last five seasons under his father, Felipe Alou, who was promoted from Expos bench coach to manager when Tom Runnels was fired early in the 1992 season.

Going whole hog

-- Bobby Bonilla may become the first Marlin to routinely enter the players' gate on a hog. He has seven Harley-Davidson motorcycles and often rode one to day games at Shea Stadium from his home in Greenwich, Conn.

Miami native

-- John Cangelosi was born in Brooklyn but attended high school and junior college in Miami.

Double up

-- Luis Castillo and shortstop Edgar Renteria, both 21, form the youngest everyday starting double-play combination in National League history. The youngest combo in major league history was Detroit's Alan Trammell and Lou Whitaker, who were both 20 when the 1978 season began.

A new position

-- Marlins think Jeff Conine can win Gold Glove at first base, his original position when he broke in with Kansas City. He's a former world-class racquetball player with great hands and lateral quickness.

Better with age

-- No National Leaguer this century has hit for better average (.361) at such an advanced age (37) than Jim Eisenreich. He led the majors with .453 average (48 for 106) in day games. Led league in two-strike batting average (.309) and was fifth in average with runners in scoring position (.386).

Kid is clutch

-- Edgar Renteria led the Marlins with a .333 batting average in clutch situations (late innings, close games). Also led the team with his .309 road batting average, which ranked seventh in the National League. Had the second-best fielding percentage among NL shortstops (.979).

Batting away

-- Gary Sheffield was second in the league in home runs, times on base (315), home run frequency (one every 12.4 at-bats) and slugging percentage vs. right-handed pitchers (.621). He ranked fourth in intentional walks (19) and fifth in slugging percentage vs. left-handed pitchers (.636).

Batting away

-- Devon White ranked fourth in the league in sacrifice flies (nine) and had the sixth-most errors (four) among NL center fielders.

Pump up the volume

-- Greg Zaun listens to heavy alternative music (Alice In Chains, Soundgarden) and can name all the characters from Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, his second-favorite movie behind Ferris Bueller's Day Off. Hitters beware

-- Teammates love the way Kevin Brown watches their backs. Telling statistic: Despite the NL's third-best strikeouts-to-walks ratio (4.8 to 1), Brown led the league in hit batsmen (16). Just think about that one.

Health watch

-- Dennis Cook has never been on the disabled list during his 12-year career, but was bothered late last season by a sore shoulder.

Workhorse

-- Alex Fernandez is ranked second in the American League in innings pitched and fourth in ERA. ... His 16,857 pitches during past five seasons is third-highest total in majors behind Chuck Finley (17,749) and Jack McDowell (17,159). John Smoltz (16,381) and Kevin Brown (16,119) are eighth and ninth. Fargo star

-- Rick Helling was a three-sport star at Fargo's Lakota High School. Led state of North Dakota in scoring one year in basketball and received a football scholarship to the University of North Dakota at Fargo.

Right side, wrong side

-- While lefty hitters had a tough time against Felix Heredia last season, right-handers feasted on him, batting .415 (17 for 41) with a .510 on-base percentage against him after he was called up in August.

Best in the West

-- Baseball America survey named Dustin Hermanson's fastball the best in the Pacific Coast League.

Quick hit

-- Despite never hitting before last season, Mark Hutton went 6 for 19 (.316) for the Marlins and hit a home run at the Astrodome.

On the other side

-- Al Leiter is an anomaly, a left-hander who's tougher on right-handed hitters, due to a 92-94 mph cut fastball that's sometimes close to unhittable. He held right-handed hitters to league-low .194 average.

A bad Rapp

-- Nobody got behind in more counts than Pat Rapp, who had the lowest strikeouts-to-walks ratio in the league (86 Ks, 91 walks in 1921/3 innings). Also had highest batting average allowed (.301), highest on-base percentage allowed (.390) and most baserunners per nine innings (15.4).